How It Feels to Drive A Formula E Car (by Gul Panag)

THRILL ZONE

Posted on: 28 June, 2017

Hola Barcelona

Ever since I can remember, I've been a huge motorsport buff. People who know me well, know that I follow the Formula1, Formula E and MotoGP racing series like a hawk. Having trained on tracks (on both cars and bikes) with multiple advanced driving/riding courses, motorsport, till today, gets my adrenaline pumping like none other. And it's not just the sheer thrill for speed. It's the thrill of possibility. The thrill of getting a sneak peek into the future – especially with an all-electric sport like Formula E.

And so, it came as no surprise to my family and friends when I nearly squealed like an excited toddler after I had hung up on Dilbagh Gill of Mahindra Racing. He had just invited me to Barcelona to test the M4Electro – an electric racecar and Formula E’s season 4 contender. I've had a go on the Formula 1 and Formula 3 cars before, but never Formula E. It would be nothing short of a dream come true if I managed this feat.

It was turning out to be a fantastic week, buzzing in and out of airports. (I had just got back from a wedding, and was on my way now to another kind of 'celebration'.) All packed and ready, and eight hours later, I land at beautiful Barcelona. At the airport, I'm greeted by Dilbagh in a swanky XUV5OO.

As we drive to the hotel, I fondly recall my previous visit to the city some years ago. I had walked up the spiralling staircase of the Sagrada Familia basilica, and took in the stunning view of the city from the top. This time around, I see the church through my hotel window. Somehow, it feels like nothing’s changed (save perspective). And the fact that this city never fails to charm me.

The Sim Gym: Building Those Driver Muscles

The next day we head to Mahindra Racing's development centre in Montmeló. I am introduced to a fab team of engineers and driver – Felix aka 'Fast Felix'. My eagerness must have been palpable, as soon after they take me straight to the test car that I was to drive the following day. The icing on the cake was seeing my name and lucky number etched on the side – an honour and moment of uncontainable joy.

Later, we go live on Facebook for fans around the world. (Almost as if it were a guilty pleasure to be shown around the centre myself). Felix and Vinit Patel (Chief Engineer) join me in answering some of the questions.

It was time to put my motor skills to the test on the simulator. As a hobby pilot, I'm no stranger to a simulator. In fact, I approach it very technically. It’s a crucial piece of equipment to practise manoeuvres and familiarise yourself with the plane (or in this case, the car).

In aviation, the more time you spend in simulation, the better you’re going to be at flying the plane. Of course, it cannot replace the actual experience of flying or driving. But, you just can’t have enough simulator time.

I clamber into the M4Electro simulator as Felix gives me some instructions. "You might feel a little sick the first time," he warns me. But I think he's just over-reacting and trying to scare me off. “I’ve done this hundreds of times," I reassure myself. (I had no idea what was coming!)

You just can’t have enough simulator time.

Felix guides me through the first few laps, and already I start to feel a little queasy. The trouble is that the field of view on the sim is more than 180 degrees, which is great because it's trying to simulate what you would see on the track – but it's also a bit disorienting.

After about 3-4 laps, I desperately need a break. I get out and sit next to the door to get some fresh air. (Felix doesn’t make it any better with the 'I told you so’ look.) I take a few minutes to collect myself; I'm ready to go on a second time, I tell them.

This time around, I let my motor skills take over. And they put me at ease almost immediately. If I had gone by instinct the first time as well, I might have done a lot better.

I go back on a third time, with my safety gear on – to get a feel of what it would be like on the track. I imagine feeling even more claustrophobic on the sim with helmet and gloves on. But surprisingly, it feels a lot better. I suppose with the helmet on, you don’t get the extra vision on the screen, and your eyes are glued to the track.

My first few words, just as I get out of the simulator. (Phew! I'm glad I survived.)

Moment(um) of Truth

It's the second testing day (out of 15 allowed by FIA) at Circuit de Calafat, Catalonia. It also happens to be World Pilots’ Day, and I can hardly wait to 'fly' this machine on the track. Or so, I think.

My biggest point of curiosity was whether I would feel at home in the car, after having completed just around 10 laps in the sim the day before. (Apparently, race drivers do 100 hours of sim time for every one hour of track time. Intense!)

When I go back flying after a long break, I make sure I put in a lot of hours on the simulator. If you haven’t flown for say, a month, then you can't fly alone by law. The instructor has to first sign you off, to fly alone. And the more sim time you do, the faster the instructor will sign you off. Typically, I get signed off in the first 30 minutes. After almost being wrecked on the sim the day before, would I still feel comfortable, I wonder. The only thing I can do now is to remember Felix's instructions and hope for the best.

When I go back flying after a long break, I make sure I put in a lot of hours on the simulator.

Felix takes me on a quick recce of the circuit in the pace car. It helps to know the curves and corners of the track. (This, by the way, is a ritual followed by the team and the drivers; they walk the entire length of the circuit before any race.)

Recce done and we're back in the garage. While Felix and the crew prep my car, I get changed into my very own race suit. (I feel so spoilt because it has my name on it as well.)

I can't help but feel sparks of excitement in the final minutes leading up to T-0. I wait with bated breath to drive this electric wonder. A safety briefing by the crew follows, and Felix gives me a few last minute instructions as well.

I get into the car, and the crew straps me in. It feels familiar and novel at the same time. I get the green signal, and I’m cautiously rolled out of the garage.

It’s time to put rubber to the road. I accelerate.

It's not a bad start, I feel. My first three laps are slow and steady. I needed to familiarise myself with the car and the track. Although I know it can do 0 to 100 kmph in 3 seconds, I couldn't help but think to myself, "I want to be alive; I don't want to wreck the car.” These were my two strongest motivations while driving. It might have slowed me down terribly, and I became a tortoise on the track.

After the first round of laps, I take the car back into the garage for a pit stop. Dilbagh says to me, "You’ve set a new record." Already? I begin to feel proud of myself. "For being the slowest driver on the track," he continues. What?! I resolve to do better in the second set of laps.

The engineers do a quick check of the car, while I reflect on how I can improve. Thank God for my instructor Felix, whose driving tips come in handy. When I go back a second time, I'm thrusting the car a lot more. By the fourth lap, I'm beginning to speed up at the corners. And by the sixth, I actually take the corners at a speed higher than comfortable.

In conventional cars, you don't take corners at high speeds, it'll roll over. But here, each time I push the car, I realise I can push it a little bit more. So with each push, it reveals itself to you.

Knowing that the M4Electro has such low CG and that it sticks, is such a reassuring fact. I regret not taking some corners faster. In hindsight, it's got so much downforce at high speeds, that I could have risked not slowing down at the curves. But it's a happy regret. I really didn’t want to land up in a ditch somewhere.

With each push, [the car] reveals itself to you.

An electric hangover?

Even after an hour of getting out of the car, I still feel the adrenaline pumping in my veins. It's the best feeling ever and a perfect day for an adrenaline junkie like me. If I had gone again, I would have definitely made a lot of improvements. But I was quite happy with my final lap. At least I wasn't holding back as much as I was in the first two.

I could still feel the adrenaline pumping in my veins.

The great thing about an FE car is that it’s a lot friendlier to drive for a novice like me. An IC engine (especially in the F1 and F3 cars) stalls if you don’t downshift at the corners. It’s not forgiving, and it expects you to drive like a professional.

It’s the end of the day and Dilbagh gifts me a mini replica of the M3Electro (Mahindra Racing’s Season 3 car). The sweeter gift, however, was seeing him grin like a Cheshire cat and his thumbs going up in the air at my badass driving in round 2.

A peek into the future

Back home in Mumbai, and the adrenaline has still not completely worn off. But I'm tripping more on the exciting eventuality of this motorsport being the future of mobility. It's only a matter of time before the powertrain from these electric racecars filters down into the next-gen vehicles.

It was the e2oPlus on steroids.

In some way, I'm happy to be part of this revolution. In fact, driving the M4Electro felt like driving a super-charged version of my EV, here in Mumbai. It was the e2oPlus on steroids. My hope is that one day every car on the street will be electric. Because I firmly believe that the quicker we move to electric mobility, the cleaner our air is going to be.